Lupins' First Christmas Party
by Ahja Reyn
Summary: [HPCoF UNIVERSE] Christmas has always been a time of acceptance...so why must Rama and his brother hide what they truly are? [HPCoF UNIVERSE]
1. Prologue

**Title**: Lupins' First Christmas Party

**Author**: Reyn

**Rating**: T for a bit of cursing

**Disclaimer**: While I may not own the original ideas of JKR's Harry Potter World, I do own the second generation of witches and wizards that appear in my stories.

**Warnings**: Set in the CoF universe

**Author's Note**: Personally I love the Lupins. Even though they have yet to receive the spotlight, they are my favorites when it comes to the CoF universe. That said; please keep in mind _what_ they are when reading their actions and dialogue towards each other.

**PROLOGUE**

Rama Lupin found himself blearily staring at the remains of a string of garland before his mind registered its conscious state. Reaching out into a full body stretch, the first year Gryffindor proceeded to disentangle himself from his older brother's limbs, shivering from the loss of body heat as he dragged his tired body off the bed and towards the shower, stumbling over several mangled dog toys on his way.

Last night had been the last full moon before the Christmas Holidays, and Rama and Wolcott celebrated it the only way their wolfish minds knew how. By playing with the dog toys they had purchased for one another before moving on to hunt down any live critters that dared to invade their Shrieking Shack whilst they were gone for the daylight hours.

They had even gone as far as to decorate the place with random objects that were crudely transfigured into bits of tinsel and other ornaments to help liven up the normally dreary settings. A Christmas tree had even been acquired, although its purpose was lost the second both boys had transformed and decided to use it as the main bathroom.

But overall, Rama couldn't deny that he had fun during their private, furry little Christmas party. Sure, he lost all 68 of their fights, the mice he hunted down kept getting away, and he _still_ couldn't catch his tail…

'_Ugh. I can't believe I still try to chase my tail._'

"Oi, budge over. It's bloody freezing out here."

Rama scowled, but made room for Wolcott under the spray of hot water regardless.

"You know, I woke up early so I could bathe alone," Rama complained as shampoo was poured on top of his head before Wolcott began to lather it up.

"Yeah, well, it got cold and I didn't feel like waiting," the older of the two cubs said as he moved on the wash his own hair. "Besides, I was nice enough to let you go outside last night and try to catch snowflakes."

"That nice act was cancelled out when you decided to scare the shit out of me by chasing after that snow hare."

"I couldn't help it!" Wolcott exclaimed. "That pesky rabbit was just begging to be turned into our Christmas dinner! Damn! And I almost had him too."

"Yeah, until you forgot the fact that snow tends to be slippery," Rama snickered, earning him a light hit upside the head.

"Whatever. At least I don't go around in circles chasing my own tail," Wolcott retorted.

"What! You promised to keep that a secret, you crap…hunter!"

"That doesn't stop me from making fun of you for it, Tail Chaser."

"Crap-Hunter!"

"Tail Chaser!"

"Crap-Hunter!"

"Tail Chaser!"

Both boys stood there glaring at each other for all of three seconds before breaking out into simultaneous grins.

"Alright, Christmas tree pisser, let's hurry up. We still have to clean up the shack before we can head back to school," Wolcott said as he climbed out of the shower and reached for a towel.

"What do you mean 'Christmas tree pisser'! You did it too!" Rama exclaimed as he scrambled out after his brother.

**Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo!**

Once they were fully dressed, Wolcott took the time to survey the damage done.

"That's odd. I don't remember chewing on that table leg…"

"Oh, that was me," Rama stated as he looked over at the said item. "You were busy licking yourself at the time."

"Ohhh. Huh, well, everything's accounted for, then," Wolcott said as he rolled up his sleeves. "You ready?"

"Yep. What was the score last time? 23-18?"

"It was 28-13, doofus," Wolcott corrected. "And that was because you got distracted by the toy cat that you didn't know squeaked."

"Well, I know it squeaks now."

"Obviously," Wolcott snickered. "Alright, on your mark, get set, GO!"

Instantly, both boys were off, the only sounds to be heard through the old house were the thumping of feet and shouted _repairo_'s as they raced to see who could fix the most.

Rama was doing pretty well, sticking mostly to the broken toys, when he came across a purple jingly ball. Picking it up, he was pleased to see that it was undamaged for the most part, with the exception of a bit of dried slobber and some teeth marks.

The ball had been a gift from Lief Malfoy-Potter when Rama had mentioned receiving dog toys from Wolcott, to which everyone perceived as gag gifts. The seven year old, not quite understanding the concept of a gag, had then promptly sent the part-wolf the purple jingly ball with a note saying it was one of Snuffles' (his dog's) unused toys, and that he hoped Rama would enjoy it as much as he enjoyed the dog toys Wolcott gave him.

Rama was so touched by the sincerity and thoughtfulness behind the gift that he didn't even have the heart to laugh at it, let alone make fun of it like everyone else was accustomed to seeing him do when it came to such degrading presents.

If only they all knew…True, he and Wolcott often exchanged dog toys under the pretense of 'brotherly love' (to be said in the most sarcastic of manners), but on the nights of the full moon, those items served their true purpose to the two werewolf cubs, and more often than not, the toys would end up mauled beyond a simple _repairo_.

Because of that, Rama had gone out of his way to be extra careful with the ball, doing little more than trotting around with it in his mouth.

It was hard to explain why he wanted the gift to last. The fact that he and his brother were werewolves was a closely guarded secret that not even their best friends knew about. So to have someone send him a gift acknowledging his heritage, even if it was done so unknowingly, was…well…nice.

"I repaired 37, eleven of which we'll have to toss because…Rama, did you even try?" Wolcott said as he entered the room to see his younger brother just standing there.

"Yes! I got 11…12!" Rama defended, adding Lief's ball to his total.

"Geez, that's worse than yesterday! I certainly hope your excuse is that you're excited about the holidays coming up," Wolcott admonished as he pulled on his outer robe and cloak.

"Yeah…I guess," Rama said, looking back down at the ball in his hands. "Wolcott, why can't we tell anyone what we really are?"

Wolcott paused, frowning at the question. "Because people would be scared and hate us for it. They would hate us for our power and simply because we're different from them."

"But not everyone thinks like that! Professor Potter once said werewolves aren't so bad!"

"Well that's because he's the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor and obviously knows more about us than other people do," Wolcott said simply as he headed down into the long tunnel that would lead them back to Hogwarts.

Rama groaned. "But I hate keeping it a secret! Dad and Padfoot always told us to be proud of what we are, so we shouldn't have to hide it. Besides, my friends are starting to get curious as to where I keep disappearing to every other night."

"What, and my friends aren't?"

"But you're a third year now! Dad said you could tell your friends if you really trust them. Don't you trust Bakura?" Rama asked curiously.

"With my life."

"Then why haven't you told him? Or Tyson?"

"Because Dad also said that if you're scared to tell them or have the smallest doubt, then don't," the elder tried to explain.

"But Wolcott," Rama whined, "they're sure to accept you!"

"Yeah, and what the hell makes you so damn sure?" Wolcott snapped a little harsher than he meant to, causing Rama to instantly back off.

The rest of their journey was made in silence as the younger Lupin mentally berated himself for forgetting his older brother's deep mistrust in other people's acceptance. The one rule that their Dad had laid down was that they weren't allowed to tell anyone about their heritage until they were at least thirteen for two reasons. One, that was the age Padfoot and his friends had figured out the truth, and two, because at that point they were old enough as well as mature enough to properly make the choice on their own.

Of course, first they would have to clear such a decision with both Padfoot and their dad, but that was to be expected.

There was nothing wrong with the rules laid down by his parents, but Rama simply didn't like having to hide something this big from his friends. It made him feel more alone than he knew he really was.

Blinking in the sunlight that was made brighter by the blanket of untouched snow as they exited the tunnel, the boys trudged their way back to the castle.

'_Someday_, Rama silently promised himself, '_Someday I'll tell my friends. And they'll accept me. I know they will!_'


	2. Interlude 1

**Title**: Lupins' First Christmas Party

**Author**: Reyn

**Rating**: T for a bit of cursing

**Disclaimer**: While I may not own the original ideas of JKR's Harry Potter World, I do own the second generation of witches and wizards that appear in my stories.

**Warnings**: Set in the CoF universe

**Author's Note**: I'm surprised this chapter ended up so long…and a BIG thanks to Quiproquo for the French.

**INTERLUDE 1: A Holiday at one of the Ans-tral Homes of the Malfoy-Potters **

Rama stared up at the large manor before them, his breath caught in his throat with disbelief at how incredibly enormous the home actually was.

_Enchanting_. There was really no other word for it; none that did it justice anyway.

True, it lacked the usual muggle Christmas lights and Santa's sleigh upon the roof, but the icicles, snow, wreaths, holly garlands, and twinkling Yuletide faeries more than made up for it. Add to that the fact that every room in the house glowed warmly, giving the place a positively inviting atmosphere and even the elusive and hard-to-impress Padfoot was left with his mouth hanging open in awe.

"Do you really think Malfoy will know if we were to 'accidentally' explore- I mean, get lost in this place?" Sirius asked, not taking his eyes away from the building.

"_Yes_," Remus deadpanned.

Wolcott and Rama snickered, clearly remembering the invitation their family had officially received just a few days before.

_Dear All_ (it read)

_Draco and I would like to cordially (as well as 'officially') invite you to Christmas this year at Malfoy Manor, beginning Christmas Eve and ending New Year's Day._

_Unfortunately, with Draco currently hovering over my shoulder (like a bloody vulture!) as I write this, I have no choice but to ask you all to _please_ stick only to the rooms open for guests seeing as how my darling husband would not enjoy _**our**_** friends** "snooping" around his ancestral home. He would also like for me to add that by showing up, you have agreed by nonverbal contract to respect such a request._

_That said, I apologize for Draco's pompous behavior and sincerely hope to see everyone there this Yuletide season._

_-Harry_

Below his signature was the Malfoy family seal, which Remus had pointed out probably had some '_ancestral_' runes hidden in its intricate design to ensure everyone would hold true to their word when they arrived. All in company snorted at that remark.

"Remus! Sirius! You guys made it!" Harry exclaimed happily before Dobby even had a chance to announce the new guests.

"Of course we made it! Free food and board from now until the New Year! When have I ever been known to turn down such a generous offer?" Sirius said as he pulled off his cloak and gloves.

"Sorry about Padfoot, Harry," Remus apologized. "I _tried_ to explain to him the concept of spending time with friends and loved ones, but all he insisted on looking forward to was the food."

"Nonsense! I'm here to see loved ones as well! Now, where's Draco, my little firecracker of a cousin?"

Harry laughed, jabbing a finger in the direction of an open door further down the hall from where the loud noises were emitting.

"As for you two," Harry said, turning his attention to Wolcott and Rama, "I do believe everyone under the age of 17, and above the age of 5, have holed themselves up in the smaller room behind the Grand Parlor. It's the door next to the smallest Christmas tree in the farthest corner. I doubt you'll miss it."

With a nod the two boys headed off, entering the Parlor and giving the crowd a quick scan as they searched for the back room.

"Hey, who's that with the bright blue hair?" Rama asked suddenly, head tilted to one side.

"That would be the Auror known as Tonks," Hermione Weasley answered, appearing out of nowhere.

"How'd she get her hair like that?"

"You said she's an Auror?" Wolcott asked sharply, feeling slightly nervous. It was common knowledge that werewolf breeding was a little less than legal in Great Britain.

"Yes, she's also Sirius' cousin and once had quite the crush on your father when I was younger," Hermione replied, smiling. "In fact, I think they even dated a few times."

"Ew," both boys sounded at once, mildly disgusted at the unappreciated information concerning their dad.

"Well, your friends should be expecting you in that room over there," Hermione pointed out. "Although I honestly have no idea what they're all up to."

Giving their thanks and heading in the direction indicated, the two boys entered a smaller, cozier-looking room where a small crowd of children and teens all sat around various furniture with their attention upon Gabriel Malfoy-Potter and Mack Weasley, whom were currently standing at the front of the room.

"Good! More people!" Mack proclaimed when he noticed the two Lupins standing by the door. "Do either of you know the story of the first Christmas?"

An exchanged glance.

"…Vaguely," Rama replied after a moment.

Mack rolled his eyes. "Well, that's better than nothing. Alright, Rama, you can be in our group. Wolcott, you go with Thomas, he'll explain everything to you. Now that everyone's here, let's get started."

With that, everyone stood and split off into their designated groups, moving to different places about the room for a bit of privacy.

"Err…what's going on?" Rama asked as he approached his group.

"We're putting on a play!" Lief replied happily from his position on the floor.

"A play?"

"Yep, it's family tradition," Gabe replied.

"Strange. I wasn't aware of such a tradition in my family."

"Yeah, yeah. Sit down, smart ass," Mack instructed. "Basically, this is the Acting group. Our play this year is the First Christmas, based on the muggle story of the Birth of Jesus. The parts we have available are the Virgin Mary, Joseph, the Hotel Manager, the three Wise Men, and the Drummer Boy."

"Can I be God?" Lief asked suddenly.

"Err…no, Lief, sorry. He's not on the list of available characters."

"But He was there when Jesus was born, right?" came an innocent reply.

"Well, yeah, but not physically."

"Oh. Well, can I be his represent-tive, then?" Lief asked hopefully.

Mack blinked. "His representative was Jesus."

"Oo! I wanna be Jesus!" Joey Weasley, Mack's younger brother, called out.

"No! I want to! I called it first!" Lief argued.

"No one is going to be Jesus because he's not on the list of available characters!" Gabe shouted. "Janet and James are going to be giving us a baby doll to work with for that particular part."

"Right. Now then, which one of you wants to be Mary?" Mack asked, looking towards Jasmine, Rose, and his cousin Jessie.

The three girls looked at each other, eyebrows raised.

"And what makes you think any of us want that part?" Jasmine asked.

"Because…it's the only female part?"

"Oh, so you just _assumed_ that because we're _girls_, we'd automatically want the girly part," Jessie stated teasingly.

"Well…yeah. Plus it's practically the main character, so I figured at least one of you would want it…"

"Nonsense," Rose sniffed, clearly offended.

"What? Well if none of you want to be Mary, then who _do_ you want to be?" Gabe asked.

"The Wise Men," Jasmine answered.

"What?"

"We want to be the Three Wise Men," Rose clarified.

"But you can't be the Three Wise Men!"

"Why not?"

"Because you're _girls_!"

"So? With the exception of Mary, all the other parts are male," Jessie pointed out.

"Fine," Mack sighed. "Lief, you'll be the Virgin Mary."

"What! Why _me_?"

"Because out of all the guys, you're the prettiest," Jasmine stated.

"WHAT! I am not _pretty_!" Lief cried out furiously.

"Yeah! Take one for the team, Lief!" Mack's cousin, John, cheered out, patting the boy on the back.

"You're currently the most effeminate-looking boy here," Jessie said. "You might as well put such appearances to good use before you outgrow them."

"I AM NOT EFFEM-NIT!"

"Lief, do you even know what that word means?" Rose calmly asked.

"If you guys try to make me the girl, I quit!" Lief threatened, ignoring his sister's question.

"Oh, go on you guys," Rama spoke up at long last. "Gabe, why don't you be the girl?"

"No way!" was the immediate response. "Besides, I already have a part."

"And what's that?"

"I'm the angel, Gabriel," Gabe stated smugly.

"How original," Rama replied dryly.

"But that wasn't on the list of available characters…" Lief pouted.

"Of course not. I already chose the part, making it unavailable."

"Moving on... Rama, we'll make you the girl," Mack decided.

"Why me?"

"Because this is your first time putting on a play with us and you deserve the biggest role. Lief, you can be Joseph, Rama's husband."

Lief turned to Rama and in all sincerity, said, "I promise to take good care of you and baby Jesus. Even if you did cheat on me with God."

"John can be the Hotel Manager and that leaves Joey with the Drummer Boy," Mack finished. "Any questions?"

"Yeah, what part are you?" Rama asked suspiciously.

"I'm the storyteller."

"I see. And do we get scripts for all this?"

"Nope," Gabe answered. "We make it up as we go along."

"I'm assuming you know more about this story than I do."

Gabe and Mack exchanged a glance. Truth be told, they had heard the story from Hermione when they were younger. Once. But Mack was sure he had a children's storybook version of it lying around back home…

"We know enough to get by," Mack said as Gabe nodded in agreement.

For some reason, Rama felt less than assured.

**Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo! **

"Oi, Rama, stick this under your shirt."

Rama stared at the odd shaped rubbery _thing_ before him. "Err…what is it?"

James Weasley rolled his eyes. "It's a balloon with a baby doll inside. It's supposed be Jesus."

"I see. And what good will Jesus be doing from under my shirt?"

"Don't question the mind of a genius!" James barked, shoving the item into Rama's hands and storming off.

"Tu es en partie vélane, n'est-ce pas?"

Rama blinked, looking down at the girl (yet another one of Mack's cousins…just how extensive was the Weasley family?) who was currently fitting him into his costume…dress…thing. "Err…_quoi_?"

"Je peux le sentir. Tu n'es pas capable de le sentir chez moi?"

"In English, Shanté," her older sister scolded while adjusting the sleeves on Mack's robes.

"Ah, pardon." The young girl blushed. "I forget myself sometimes. I was asking if you 'ave veela 'eritage?"

"Yeah, I do actually. Although it shows up stronger in my older brother. How did you…" Rama trailed off as he actually looked at the girl kneeling before him.

Pale blue eyes, long silvery hair that was nearly pink thanks to her Weasley genes, pale complexion…and something _else_.

"You're part-veela too, aren't you!"

Shanté giggled. "Yes, my grand-grandmother was a full veela."

"Really? I got it from my mom, who got it from her mom, who got it from _her_ mom."

"So, in other words, you got it from your great-grandmother as well," Mack pointed out sarcastically.

"Amazing! We are so alike!" Shanté squealed happily, scooting closer to Rama. "This is so exciting! I 'ave never met a male veela before."

"Part-veela," Rama automatically corrected warily. He recognized that star-struck look in her eyes. It was the intensified version of what he usually got from the female population back at Hogwarts. Coming to a quick decision, he flashed her a winning smile. "So…Shanté was it?"

"Oi! No hitting on my cousins!" Mack exclaimed as Shanté's older sister giggled.

"Il est vraiment canon, n'est-ce pas? Il n'a pas un grand frère par hasard?"

"Oui."

"And you two! Stop gossiping about him!"

"Oh, but Mack, we were merely talking about 'is older brother," Shanté pouted.

"Wolcott is off limits as well."

"So 'is name is Wolcott?"

Mack scowled.

**Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo! Doodle-eh-doo! **

"PROPS! We need more props!" James Weasley shouted before running off to a random corner of the room to retrieve something from the pile of junk he and his cousin Janet had created.

"Lief," Jessie said apprehensively, "if you keep waving that staff around like that you're going to-"

CRASH!

"Never mind…"

"Will Father be mad?" Lief asked, staring at the now broken statue on the floor.

"Nonsense. Uncle Draco won't even know! _Repairo_!"

"…"

"…"

"It's not fixed," Lief said, pointing out the obvious.

"Bloody hell. Gabe! Did this statue have magical properties?"

"I don't know. Probably. Why? Can't you fix it?" the eldest Malfoy-Potter child asked, walking over to the mess.

"Erm…no, not exactly."

"Well, we could always try to fix it the muggle way," James stated, rejoining the group.

"If it can't be fixed, I'm going to have to tell Father," Gabe warned.

"Am I going to be in trouble?" asked a suddenly fearful Lief.

"Of course not! James and I can fix it, right James?"

"Right, Janet!"

Gabe simply rolled his eyes and made his way to the door.

"Lief, you go wait by Rama."

The said werewolf watched as a pouting Lief dropped the shepherd's staff and walked over.

"Hey, Lief!" he greeted. "You excited about the play?"

A small sniffle was his only reply.

"Aw, don't be sad! Your father won't get angry over such a small statue!"

Lief's lower lip trembled. "Yes, he will. Before we came here, he told us we had to be very careful 'cuz this is our ans-tral home and if we broke any family air-looms, he wouldn't be happy."

"Not being happy doesn't necessarily mean he'll be mad," Rama offered.

At that moment, the door swung open, revealing the very intimidating figures of Draco and Harry Malfoy-Potter.

"What on Salazar's green earth is going on in here?" Draco demanded, glaring at the frozen countenances of all the children. "And why the hell are you all dressed like Arabian wizards?"

Lief whimpered and moved to partially hide himself behind Rama's form. Janet and James tried to inconspicuously hide the broken bits of statue by shoving them under the nearest couch with their foot. Unfortunately, the hurried movements of their feet scraping against the floor immediately drew the adults' attention directly to them.

"What's all this?" Harry asked, heading over to the twin cousins as they continued to vainly guard the evidence.

"It's nothing really, we were just…ah…"

"Rehearsing! And…erm…we decided that this prop wasn't needed so…"

"We left it where it was and didn't touch it and have no idea how it ended up this way," James quickly finished as Harry peered around them uncertainly, with Draco strolling over as well, eyebrow raised in suspicion until-

"Is…Is that the statue of Horus, blessed by the ancient Pharaoh Atemu himself, that my great-great-great-grandfather brought back from Egypt!" Draco exclaimed angrily, horrified at the fact that he was looking upon the children's failed hiding attempt of the once-famous antique that was now reduced to the ancient falcon god's broken head and the remains of what appeared to be its body.

It was at this point Lief started to cry.

The rest of the room was left to watch in sympathetic amusement as the youngest Malfoy-Potter ran up to his father, bawling his eyes out, as he leaned his forehead against the tall leg.

"Lief? What's wrong?" Harry asked with concern as he knelt down next to his son.

"Err…he's kind of the one who reduced the statue to rubble…"

"Lief, is that true?" Draco asked a bit harsher than he meant to, causing the poor boy's entire body to become wracked with sobs as he nodded against his father's leg.

Harry scowled up at his husband before pulling Lief into his arms. "Hey now, it's okay. We're not mad."

"Oh sure, that's easy for _you_ to say, Potter," Draco snapped, kneeling to pick up a piece of the broken sculpture. "You're not the one who just lost a rare and valuable bit of Ancient Egyptian magic."

"Your point?" Harry asked dangerously as he fixed Draco with a deadly glare.

The blonde's scowl quickly turned into a longing look of exasperation before transforming into one of defeat. "Come here, Lief," he said with a sigh, nearly falling back as his son threw himself into the open arms, latching tightly onto Draco's neck.

Harry could not help but smile at the display as Draco reassured Lief that no, he was not angry with him, yes, he was in trouble, yes, he would be punished, but no, not right now, and yes, Draco promised that he was not mad.

With that, the mess was cleaned up, and the children were left to finish preparing for their play.


	3. Interlude 2

**Title**: Lupins' First Christmas Party

**Author**: Reyn

**Rating**: T for a bit of cursing

**Disclaimer**: While I may not own the original ideas of JKR's Harry Potter World, I do own the second generation of witches and wizards that appear in my stories.

**Warnings**: Set in the CoF universe

**Author's Note**: Don't get offended by the play! It was all written in good humor.

**Chapter 2**

"Ladies and gentlemen! We, your very talentedchildren, are proud to announce the production of this year's holiday play: The First Christmas!" Mack proclaimed importantly to the seated audience.

Patiently waiting until the applause died down, he continued. "This year's crew consisted of Thomas Weasley and Wolcott Lupin for Set Design and stagehands, James and Janet Weasley with Props, Shanté and Eloise Weasley with Costumes, myself, Mack Weasley, as Storyteller, and everyone else as your main source of entertainment.

"That said, if something sucks about this play, you now know who to blame."

Laughter and applause echoed throughout the room as Mack bowed and made his way to the edge of the stage as the curtains slid open to reveal a large painted mural of a simple home, with several throw pillows scattered about the floor in an attempt to give it a more Middle Eastern feel.

In the middle of the stage knelt Rama, wearing a feminine-looking robe with his hands clasped together and head bowed as if in prayer.

"Are those my mother's silk pillows?" Draco exclaimed, complete scandalized.

"Is that my godson, wearing a _dress_?" Sirius asked, equally horrified.

Numerous sets of _Shh!_'s came from around the audience which consisted of a good number of proud parents wanting to see their children in the spotlight.

"Now then, young Mary of Galileo was a woman of high morale and was happily married to a carpenter named Joseph. However, neither of them had done it yet because they were too poor for a honeymoon, so Mary remained a virgin.

"One day, while Mary was visiting her cousin a few towns over, she prayed to God as per usual…"

"'Per usual'? That sounds like something _Granger_ would say."

"Shove it, _Malfoy_!"

"…when something unusual happened."

The spotlights brightened and in a puff of smoke, Gabe appeared wearing a flimsy white gown that appeared to be made of silk with lace trimming and gold strings to help tie it in place, along with small wings fixed to his back and a 'halo' floating above his head.

"Is that my white negligee?" Hermione whispered in shock, looking a bit pale.

"Oh sweet Salazaar…my mother's gold necklace!" Draco groaned, putting his head in his hands.

"Who are you?" Rama gasped out in a falsetto voice at this new intruder.

"Virgin Mary, I am the messenger angel, Gabriel. I am here to tell you that God orders you to have His baby," Gabe said, pointing his finger at the still-kneeling figure.

Rama blinked. "And how am I supposed to do that?"

"Simple," Gabe pulled out his wand. "_Inflatio_!"

The balloon that had been taped to the inside of Rama's shirt earlier suddenly inflated, giving him the appearance of a pregnant stomach.

"Holy cow!" Rama exclaimed, looking down.

Gabe smirked. "Holy baby, actually."

"What, this is supposed to be baby Jesus?" Rama asked, pointing to his stomach.

"Yep."

"That's it?"

"Yeah. Why? Did you think it would hurt or something?"

"No…It's just that I was always taught that sex was usually involved to make a baby and here I am still a virgin."

Several adults sent Remus and Sirius amused, questioning glances.

"No, God wants to keep you a virgin for some reason or another," Gabe drawled, waving his hand about in dismissal. "Now go home and spread the good news."

"Go home?" Rama asked skeptically. "Like _this_?"

"Yeah. What's wrong with that?"

"It's a bit bloody suspicious, don't you think? What am I gonna say to my husband? 'Why hello Joseph, husband dearest, I've never slept with you, but now I'm conveniently pregnant after a nice long vacation. Isn't that just grand?'"

Gabe rolled his eyes. "Joseph will understand. And if he doesn't, then I'll haunt him in his dreams."

The curtains closed, indicating the end of the scene.

"And so, Mary went back home, not pregnant with God's child, baby Jesus. She was thrilled at the idea of having a baby and hoped that her husband, Joseph, would feel the same way."

The curtains reopened to reveal the same mural, only with different colors for the walls, and the throw pillows rearranged differently about on the floor. In the center of the stage sat Lief with a hammer, pounding it into the floor for lack of any carpentry props.

Another agonizing groan was heard from Draco.

"Joseph, I'm home!" Rama called out, walking on stage.

"Mary, I missed you!" Lief cried out dramatically, carelessly tossing the hammer aside in favor of rushing over to give his 'wife' a hug. "What happened? You got fat."

"Oh, Joseph! I have wonderful news! I'm pregnant!"

"How'd that happen?" Lief asked.

"God sent the angel Gabriel to me so I could have His baby."

Lief's eyes widened. "You cheated on me with Gabe? But I thought you were supposed to cheat on me with God!"

"What? No, Lie-Joseph, God gave me this child."

"So then you _did_ cheat on me with God. But then why'd you just say you cheated on me with Gabe?" Lief asked in confusion.

"Sweetie, I didn't cheat on you," Rama attempted to explain.

"Then how'd you get pregnant?"

"By God."

"But…you just said you didn't cheat on me."

"I didn't. I would never cheat on you."

"But…" Lief frowned. It was clear the concept was flying right over his head. Several moments passed by in silence as he tried to make sense of this confusing dilemma.

Suddenly, whispering from offstage could be heard, causing both boys to turn around.

More mutterings and several hand gestures later, a look of comprehension dawned on Rama's face, and much to the relief of the audience, the play was able to move on.

"Joseph, why don't you lie down over here and take a nap?" Rama suggested, guiding Lief to one of the throw pillows.

"But I'm not sleepy," Lief complained.

"Ah, yes you are," Rama said with an exaggerated nod of the head, indicating to the other boy to just go with the flow.

"Oh, okay then!"

With that, the small boy curled up on the floor and closed his eyes, allowing Rama to hurry offstage. As soon as the werewolf was no longer in sight, Gabe strode into the spotlight.

"Joseph the Carpenter, wake up! I must speak with you!"

In an instant, Lief was sitting up. "Gabe! Did you cheat on me with my wife?" he asked, cutting straight to the point.

"Err, no. Listen, I'm here to tell you that Mary didn't cheat on you."

"Then how'd he get pregnant?"

"God willed it so."

Lief simply blinked.

"Look, God is so powerful, that He was able to give Mary a baby without her having to cheat on you."

"Did He use a potion?"

"No."

"A spell?"

"No, He's just really powerful."

Leif's eyes widened. "More powerful than Father and Dad?" he asked incredulously.

"He-" Gabe cut himself off and tried to suppress a frustrated growl. "That's beside the point. The point is Mary didn't cheat on you even though he - _she's_ pregnant. The child is a boy and his name is baby Jesus, and you will raise him as your own. Okay?"

"Okay." Lief nodded in agreement.

"Good. Now go back to sleep; this was all a dream."

On that order, Lief lied back down and shut his eyes just as the curtains closed.

Mack stepped forward. "And so Joseph accepted the child, and continued to love and take care of Mary throughout the many months of her pregnancy. However, one day towards the end of her nine months, the evil King Hector ordered a head count of everyone in his land, and demanded everyone be at the city of their birth when they're counted.

"This left Joseph and Mary with no choice but to travel the long road to Brothel Ham-"

"Bethlehem," Hermione called out, automatically correcting her son.

"Right. Bethlehem. Problem was Bethlehem was a popular place to be born at, so it was overcrowded with no rooms available at any of the hotels. But Joseph refused to give up. Mary was about to have the baby and they desperately needed a place to stay."

The curtains reopened to show Lief and Rama standing in front of a large inn.

"Open up! Open up!" Lief cried while pounding on the inn's door, causing the backdrop to sway and teeter.

"Oi!" Out stepped John wearing his pajamas and a nightcap on his head, blearily rubbing one eye as if he had just woken up.

Hoots and hollers arose from Fred and George at the boy's appearance, causing the Weasley to step out of character for a moment as he raised both of his fists in glory. As quickly as the moment came, it passed and John was once again the inn keeper.

"Oi, do you have any bloody idea what time it is!"

Lief appeared to think for a moment before his eyes flickered uncertainly out to the audience. "7:30?"

John blinked and shook his head, abruptly dismissing the Lief's obvious misunderstanding. "What do you want?"

"My wife's having a baby!"

"Does this look like a hospital to you?" John questioned.

"No…it- it looks like a hotel."

"Exactly! Now if you need a place to stay, I'm your man."

"Oh!" Lief exclaimed as if he suddenly remembered the reason he had been pounding on the door in the first place. "We need a place to stay for the night."

"Sorry, I haven't got any rooms available," John the inn keeper said, not sounding very sorry at all.

"What! But you _must_ have a room! Everywhere else is full!"

"So what makes you think this inn will be any different?"

"But…but we _need_ a place to stay, _now_! We've _tried_ everywhere else! You're our last hope! Please! I'm des-per-ate!"

"I can't believe they've reduced my son to _begging_," Draco moaned, looking quite ill indeed.

"Alright, look. The most I can offer you is a place in the stables. It's no five-star hotel, but it's better than sleeping out in the cold."

"We'll take it!"

The backdrop behind them suddenly fell, revealing a second mural depicting the inside of a barn. Several enlarged stuffed animals were tossed out on stage, including that of a horse, a rabbit, and an elephant – which was quickly transfigured into a cow.

"And so it was here in the humble stables of Brothel – I mean, _Bethlehem_ – that baby Jesus was born," Mack narrated.

Suddenly, John pulled out a large needle and poked Rama's fake stomach, bursting the balloon underneath his shirt with a loud 'POP!', causing Rama to hiss in pain as a baby doll fell to the ground from under his robes.

"Bloody _hell_, that smarts!" Rama whined as he clutched his stomach. The action earned him several chuckles; mostly from the women in the audience.

"Look!" Lief exclaimed, bending down to pick up the doll and hold it above his head by its foot. "It's baby Jesus! He's finally been born!"

A polite applause rose up from the audience and Lief handed the baby over to Rama, who awkwardly took it and held it off to the side, really not sure what he was supposed to do with it.

At that moment, Jasmine, Rose, and Jessie all walked out wearing their best dress robes.

"We," Jasmine stated importantly, "are the Three Wise Women!"

"'Three Wise Women'? What happened to the Three Wise Men?" Rama asked.

Rose sighed dramatically. "Our husbands couldn't make it. They had a town meeting to attend to."

"Yep, so you got stuck with us instead," Jessie said. "But don't worry. We come bearing gifts."

"Here, this is the finest silk in all of Persia," Jasmine said as she handed over a bundle of cloth. "It's to make clothes for the baby."

"And this is a box of the finest gemstones in all the land," Rose stated, holding out a finely decorated chest. "It's to decorate the place and make it pretty."

Jessie smiled. "Unlike these two, I tried to somewhat stick with the story, but I couldn't find any incense of the Franken kind, so you'll have to settle with sage. But it's the greatest sage incense in the entire world, if that makes you feel any better."

"Oh, very much so, thank you!" Lief nodded enthusiastically.

"And finally, we bring you live entertainment to help lull the baby to sleep, and to signify the ending of our play," Jasmine said, gesturing off to the side as little walked onstage, banging on a small drum that he was carrying under his arm.

"Jingle BELLS! Jingle BELLS! Jingle all the WAAAAAYYYY!  
Oh what FUUUUUNN it is to SIIIIIIIINNNNG in a one horse open sleeeeEEEIIIGHH!  
Jingle BELLS! Jingle BELLS! Jingle all the WAAAAAAYYY!  
Oh what FUN it is to SIIING in a oooonnnnne hooorrsse ooPEEEENNN  
SLEEEEEEE**EEEEEIIIIIGGGGHHHH**!"

Everyone winced at the high off-note pitch, which was accompanied by incessant banging, but clapped nonetheless, much to the youngster's delight.

With that, all the children came out and lined up on stage, bowing to their well-deserved standing ovation. The curtains closed and the applause went on, letting the children know it was truly a job well done.


End file.
